Sometimes called "red flag laws," extreme risk protection orders let a court temporarily remove someone's firearms if there's evidence they pose a danger to themselves or others. This bill would create a federal grant program to help states, tribes, and local governments set up and run these programs, with 25 to 70 percent of funding going toward law enforcement training — including training on racial bias, domestic violence situations, and mental health de-escalation. To qualify for grants, states would need to pass laws meeting certain minimum standards: a petition process, a court hearing within 30 days, and a path for the person to get their firearms back once the order expires and they're legally eligible. The bill does allow courts to issue temporary ex parte orders — meaning firearms can be removed before the person has a chance to appear in court, based on a finding of probable cause — which due process advocates on both sides of the gun debate have flagged as a concern. People subject to these orders would also be added to the federal background check system, and orders issued in one state would have to be honored in every other state.
Civil Liberties
- Pre-hearing firearm access — Ex parte orders may remove firearms before the named individual appears in court, on a probable-cause finding
- Hearing window — Full hearing required within 30 days of the petition or request
- Return path — Firearms returnable when the order expires and the individual is again eligible under federal and state law
- Cross-state recognition of orders — Full faith and credit required between states and tribes for ERPO orders
- NICS database coverage — ERPO subjects added to the federal background-check system
Transparency & Accountability
- Annual grant-recipient reporting — Petition counts, demographics, and order outcomes reported to the Attorney General each year
- Law-enforcement training mandate — 25–70% of grant funds directed to bias, domestic-violence, and de-escalation training
Congressional Summary
This bill establishes grants to support the implementation of extreme risk protection order laws at the state and local levels, extends federal firearms restrictions to individuals who are subject to extreme risk protection orders, and expands related data collection. Extreme risk protection order laws, or red flag laws, generally allow certain individuals (e.g., law enforcement officers or family members) to petition a court for a temporary order that prohibits an at-risk individual from purchasing and possessing firearms.Among its provisions, the billdirects the Department of Justice to establish a grant program to help states, local governments, Indian tribes, and other entities implement extreme risk protection order laws;extends federal restrictions on the receipt, possession, shipment, and transportation of firearms and ammunition to individuals who are subject to extreme risk protection orders; andrequires the Federal Bureau of Investigation to compile records from federal, tribal, and state courts and other agencies that identify individuals who are subject to extreme risk protection orders.
Details
- Congress
- 119th
- Chamber
- Senate
- Status
- summarized
- Action
- Introduced in Senate
- Action Date
- 2025-03-06
- Date Added
- 2026-03-30
- Source
- Congress.gov →
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